The Generic Pharmaceutical Association has added two senior-level staff members to its government affairs division.

Jonathan Dorst, a former legislative assistant for Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., joined GPhA as senior manager of federal government affairs. GPhA also added Hannah Green to focus on measures at the state level as senior manager of state government affairs.

The fact that both positions were open at the same time was unusual, according to Melissa Schulman, senior vice president of GPhA government affairs. However, when it came to Dorst and Green, “both had more experience than we thought we were initially going to be able to find,” Schulman said in a recent phone interview. GPhA represents generic drug manufacturers and distributors and Dorst said working for GPhA will allow him to “further develop an expertise in health care policy.”

Dorst joined Wyden’s office as an intern right out of college in 2007. He worked his way up to become a legislative assistant with a focus on health care policy. Wyden now chairs the Senate Finance Committee, which has broad jurisdiction over health care matters.

“Seven years on the Hill gave me an understanding of how things work up there,” Dorst said, “and the intersection between policy and politics is something that I’m familiar with.”

The new senior manager said he will now be delving into the federal issues that are important to the GPhA and its members, and he will return to Capitol Hill to work with lawmakers on health policy.

While Dorst will work with the federal government, Green will focus her efforts on the states in her new role.

Green said her new position is “a very exciting opportunity to expand my advocacy work to all 50 states.” She comes to the GPhA from the National Coalition of STD Directors, where she focused on Midwestern and Southern states.

Green will now keep track of state laws and educate state lawmakers on the benefits of generic medicine. She started her career at an AIDS service organization, which sparked her passion for health policy. “I’ve seen firsthand what a difference health care means to people,” she said. “For me, this is a natural step to expand my advocacy work.”

Dorst also brings an interest in health policy to GPhA. He noted that both his mother and sister are nurses so, he added, “Health care policy is something I’m passionate about.”